Elizabeth Cleary

Background and Bio

Since Elizabeth began showing her work in Vermont in 2006 she has participated in the Taste of Stowe Art Festival, Stowe Foliage Festival, the Art Hop Juried Show, and taken part in gallery group shows in Stowe, Jeffersonville and Woodstock, as well as showing at many venues in the Burlington area. In 2010 Elizabeth attended a residency at the Vermont Studio Center, and won the Board of Directors award in the Arts Alive Festival of Fine Art. In 2012 Elizabeth participated in the community project, “Burlington Bears Its Art”, in which she painted a large bear sculpture, which was displayed on Church Street. In 2012 she won Honorable Mention in Acrylic in the Champlain Valley Fair Art Gallery, for her piece “Breakfast in the City”. In 2014 she again received Honorable Mention at the Champlain Valley Fair Art Gallery, this time for her piece, “Rooted”.

About The Artist

Elizabeth Cleary has lived in Vermont since she was a young child. She grew up taking private and group art lessons from a local artist. Elizabeth attended the University of Vermont, as an Art major, and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree. She mainly works in acrylic paints.

Elizabeth paints a variety of subjects. In the last several years she has focused on still lifes containing reflective and transparent objects, translucent creatures, trees, and commissioned pet portraits. She has also been creating more mixed media pieces; which can include fabric, string, paper or sand, along with the acrylic paint.

Elizabeth strives to achieve strong senses of lighting and color in each piece, so much so that they have as much importance to the painting as the main subject matter. Most of Elizabeth’s work tends to be highly representational, however, she also enjoys the feel of a loose style as evidence of the process. This is accomplished by using large brushes, and using less detail in some areas of the painting, while playing up other areas with more detail.